Agribusiness Conference

It was invaluable and I was able to gain knowledge about a variety of topics. I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to network with experts in Agribusiness in New Zealand.

Dr Jacqueline Rowarth was the keynote speaker and presented three topics: Agribusiness in New Zealand, Food Traceability: The Way of the Future and Building a Great Career.

Dr Anna Campbell, Managing Director of Abacus Bio gave an informative presentation about Innovation in Agribusiness. She also spoke about local industries who are world-leaders in this area.

Dr Michelle Glogau from GrowingNZ Careers provided an overview of opportunities in the primary industry including the current and future skills needed by many sectors, and the range of activities, resources and events to help teachers and students explore these. Three young professionals working in different primary sectors discussed their current roles, how they had attained them, and what their career prospects might be in the next 5-10 years. All three individuals emphasised the huge job opportunities due to skill shortages.

Greg Piner, group chef at Vault 21 and Prohibition restaurant demonstrated a practical cooking lesson using beef, venison and lamb from Silverfern Farms. This was a fun way to spend the afternoon. Greg spoke about the importance of trusting the sources of food as customers like to know the stories behind what they are eating.

James Dicey from Mt Difficulty Wines in presented Futureproofing in the wine industry.

Bernie de Bono from Silver Fern Farms (responsible for Silver Fern Farms brand strategy, growth in development in food service and hospitality across NZ and in global markets) presented an interesting discussion about Marketing an Agribusiness Product. I found this particularly useful as the students will be marketing a product as part of their course this year.

The final speaker was Dan Boulton from Silver Fern Farms. He spoke about Leadership in Agribusiness including the variety of roles he has had within the primary sector.

Next week’s speaker:

David Cooper, Federated Farmers – Synthetic Foods